儿童英语童话故事

童话故事中鲜明、生动的形象可促进儿童审美情感的发展;童话语言的鲜明口语性,可培养儿童说话能力,下面这些是小编为大家推荐的几篇儿童英语童话故事。

儿童英语童话故事1：The Twelve Huntsmen

Once upon a time there was a King's son who was engaged to a Princess whom he dearly loved. One day as he sat by her side feeling very happy, he received news that his father was lying at the point of death, and desired to see him before his end. So he said to his love: 'Alas! I must go off and leave you, but take this ring and wear it as a remembrance of me, and when I am King I will return and fetch you home.'

Then he rode off, and when he reached his father he found him mortally ill and very near death.

The King said: 'Dearest son, I have desired to see you again before my end. Promise me, I beg of you, that you will marry according to my wishes'; and he then named the daughter of a neighbouring King who he was anxious should be his son's wife. The Prince was so overwhelmed with grief that he could think of nothing but his father, and exclaimed: 'Yes, yes, dear father, whatever you desire shall be done.' Thereupon the King closed his eyes and died.

After the Prince had been proclaimed King, and the usual time of mourning had elapsed, he felt that he must keep the promise he had made to his father, so he sent to ask for the hand of the King's daughter, which was granted to him at once.

Now, his first love heard of this, and the thought of her lover's desertion grieved her so sadly that she pined away and nearly died. Her father said to her: 'My dearest child, why are you so unhappy? If there is anything you wish for, say so, and you shall have it.'

His daughter reflected for a moment, and then said: 'Dear father, I wish for eleven girls as nearly as possible of the same height, age, and appearance as myself.'

Said the King: 'If the thing is possible your wish shall be fulfilled'; and he had his kingdom searched till he found eleven maidens of the same height, size, and appearance as his daughter.

Then the Princess desired twelve complete huntsmen's suits to be made, all exactly alike, and the eleven maidens had to dress themselves in eleven of the suits, while she herself put on the twelfth. After this she took leave of her father, and rode off with her girls to the court of her former lover.

Here she enquired whether the King did not want some huntsmen, and if he would not take them all into his service. The King saw her but did not recognize her, and as he thought them very good- looking young people, he said, 'Yes, he would gladly engage them all.' So they became the twelve royal huntsmen.

Now, the King had a most remarkable Lion, for it knew every hidden or secret thing.

One evening the Lion said to the King: 'So you think you have got twelve huntsmen, do you?'

'Yes, certainly,' said the King, 'they _are_ twelve huntsmen.'

'There you are mistaken,' said the Lion; 'they are twelve maidens.'

'That cannot possibly be,' replied the King

; 'how do you mean to prove that?'

'Just have a number of peas strewed over the floor of your ante- chamber,' said the Lion, 'and you will soon see. Men have a strong, firm tread, so that if they happen to walk over peas not one will stir, but girls trip, and slip, and slide, so that the peas roll all about.'

The King was pleased with the Lion's advice, and ordered the peas to be strewn in his ante-room.

Fortunately one of the King's servants had become very partial to the young huntsmen, and hearing of the trial they were to be put to, he went to them and said: 'The Lion wants to persuade the King that you are only girls'; and then told them all the plot.

The King's daughter thanked him for the hint, and after he was gone she said to her maidens: 'Now make every effort to tread firmly on the peas.'

Next morning, when the King sent for his twelve huntsmen, and they passed through the ante-room which was plentifully strewn with peas, they trod so firmly and walked with such a steady, strong step that not a single pea rolled away or even so much as stirred. After they were gone the King said to the Lion: 'There now--you have been telling lies--you see yourself they walk like men.'

'Because they knew they were being put to the test,' answered the Lion; 'and so they made an effort; but just have a dozen spinning- wheels placed in the ante-room. When they pass through you'll see how pleased they will be, quite unlike any man.'

The King was pleased with the advice, and desired twelve spinning- wheels to be placed in his ante-chamber.

But the good-natured servant went to the huntsmen and told them all about this fresh plot. Then, as soon as the King's daughter was alone with her maidens, she exclaimed: 'Now, pray make a great effort and don't even _look_ at those spinning-wheels.'

When the King sent for his twelve huntsmen next morning they walked through the ante-room without even casting a glance at the spinning-wheels.

Then the King said once more to the Lion: 'You have deceived me again; they _are_ men, for they never once looked at the spinning-wheels.'

The Lion replied: 'They knew they were being tried, and they did violence to their feelings.' But the King declined to believe in the Lion any longer.

So the twelve huntsmen continued to follow the King, and he grew daily fonder of them. One day whilst they were all out hunting it so happened that news was brought that the King's intended bride was on her way and might soon be expected. When the true bride heard of this she felt as though a knife had pierced her heart, and she fell fainting to the ground. The King, fearing something had happened to his dear huntsman, ran up to help, and began drawing off his gloves. Then he saw the ring which he had given to his first love, and as he gazed into her face he knew her again, and his heart was so touched that he kissed her,

and as she opened her eyes, he cried: 'I am thine and thou art mine, and no power on earth can alter that.'

To the other Princess he despatched a messenger to beg her to return to her own kingdom with all speed. 'For,' said he, 'I have got a wife, and he who finds an old key again does not require a new one.'

Thereupon the wedding was celebrated with great pomp, and the Lion was restored to the royal favour, for after all he had told the truth.

儿童英语童话故事2:The Three Snake-Leaves

Once upon a time...

There was once a poor man who could no longer afford to keep his only son at home. So the son said to him, 'Dear father, you are so poor that I am only a burden to you; I would rather go out into the world and see if I can earn my own living.' The father gave him his blessing and took leave of him with much sorrow. About this time the King of a very powerful kingdom was carrying on a war; the youth therefore took service under him and went on the campaign. When they came before the enemy, a battle took place, there was some hot fighting, and it rained bullets so thickly that his comrades fell around him on all sides. And when their leader fell too the rest wished to take to flight; but the youth stepped forward and encouraged them and called out, 'We must not let our country be ruined!' Then others followed him, and he pressed on and defeated the enemy. When the King heard that he had to thank him alone for the victory, he raised him higher than anyone else in rank, gave him great treasures and made him the first in the kingdom.

The King had a daughter who was very beautiful, but she was also very capricious. She had made a vow to marry no one who would not promise her that if she died first, he would allow himself to be buried alive with her. 'If he loves me truly,' she used to say, 'what use would life be to him then?' At the same time she was willing to do the same, and if he died first to be buried with him. This curious vow had up to this time frightened away all suitors, but the young man was so captivated by her beauty, that he hesitated at nothing and asked her hand of her father. 'Do you know,' asked the King, 'what you have to promise?' 'I shall have to go into her grave with her,' he answered, 'if I outlive her, but my love is so great that I do not think of the risk.' So the King consented, and the wedding was celebrated with great splendour.

Now, they lived for a long time very happily with one another, but then it came to pass that the young Queen fell seriously ill, and no doctor could save her. And when she lay dead, the young King remembered what he had promised, and it made him shudder to think of lying in her grave alive, but there was no escape. The King had set guards before all the gates, and it was not possible to avoid his fate.

When the day arrived on which the corpse was to be laid in the royal vault, he was led thither, then the entrance was bolted and closed up.

Near the coffin stood a table on which were placed four candles, four loaves of bread, and four bottles of wine. As soon as this provision came to an end he would have to die. So he sat there full of grief and misery, eating every day only a tiny bit of bread, and drinking only a mouthful of ovine, and he watched death creeping nearer and nearer to him. One day as he was sitting staring moodily in front of him, he saw a snake creep out of the corner

towards the corpse. Thinking it was going to touch it, he drew his sword and saying, 'As long as I am alive you shall not harm her,' he cut it in three pieces. After a little time a second snake crept out of the corner, but when it saw the first one lying dead and in pieces it went back and came again soon, holding three green leaves in its mouth. Then it took the three bits of the snake and laid them in order, and put one of the leaves on each wound. Immediately the pieces joined together, the snake moved itself and became alive and then both hurried away. The leaves remained lying on the ground, and it suddenly occurred to the unfortunate man who had seen everything, that the wonderful power of the leaves might also be exercised upon a human being.

So he picked up the leaves and laid one of them on the mouth and the other two on the eyes of the dead woman. And scarcely had he done this, before the blood began to circulate in her veins, then it mounted and brought colour back to her white face. Then she drew her breath, opened her eyes, and said, 'Ah! where am I?' 'You are with me, dear lady,' he answered, and told her all that had happened, and how he had brought her to life again. He then gave her some wine and bread, and when all her strength had returned she got up, and they went to the door and knocked and called so loudly that the guards heard them, and told the King. The King came himself to open the door, and there he found both happy and well, and he rejoiced with them that now all trouble was over. But the young King gave the three snake-leaves to a servant, saying to him, 'Keep them carefully for me, and always carry them with you; who knows but that they may help us in a time of need!'

It seemed, however, as if a change had come over the young Queen after she had been restored to life, and as if all her love for her husband had faded from her heart. Some time afterwards, when he wanted to take a journey over the sea to his old father, and they were on board the ship, she forgot the great love and faithfulness he had shown her and how he had saved her from death, and fell in love with the captain. And one day when the young King was lying asleep, she called the captain to her, and seized the head of the sleeping King and made him take his feet, and together they threw him into the sea. When they had done this wicked deed, she said to him, 'Now let us go home and say that he died on the journey. I will praise you so much to my father that he will marry me to you and make you the heir to the throne.' But the faithful servant, who had seen everything, let down a little boat into the sea, unobserved by them, and rowed after his master while the traitors sailed on. He took the drowned man out of the water, and with the help of the three snake-leaves which he carried with him, placing them on his mouth and eyes, he brought him to life again.

They both rowed as hard as they could night and day, and their litt

le boat went so quickly that they reached the old King before the other two did. He was much astonished to see them come back alone, and asked what had happened to them. When he heard the wickedness of his daughter, he said, 'I cannot believe that she has acted so wrongly, but the truth will soon come to light.' He made them both go into a secret chamber, and let no one see them.

Soon after this the large ship came in, and the wicked lady appeared before her father with a very sad face. He said to her, 'Why have you come back alone? Where is your husband?'

'Ah, dear father,' she replied, 'I have come home in great grief; my husband fell ill on the voyage quite suddenly, and died, and if the good captain had not given me help, I should have died too. He was at his death-bed and can tell you everything.'

The King said, 'I will bring the dead to life again,' and he opened the door of the room and called them both out. The lady was as if thunderstruck when she caught sight of her husband; she fell on her knees and begged for mercy. But the King said, 'You shall have no mercy. He was ready to die with you, and restored you to life again; but you killed him when he was sleeping, and shall receive your deserts.'

So she and her accomplice were put in a ship which was bored through with holes, and were drawn out into the sea, where they soon perished in the waves.

儿童英语童话故事3:The Littlest Knight

Once upon a time long ago, even before the days of King Arthur, there lived a blacksmith only three feet tall. He was so short that he needed a stool to stand on to shoe the great steeds of the knights. This bothered him not a bit because although he was small he was very brave. In fact, in his heart he secretly longed to become a knight and win the hand of the Princess.

The Princess was the King and Queen's only child and it should come as no surprise that the little blacksmith loved her very much for she was both kind and beautiful. She was even smaller than he, and had dancing eyes and long silken hair which she wore in a coiled braid. But, alas, the little blacksmith could admire the Princess only from afar because she was, after all, a princess and he but a lowly blacksmith--not even that tall. One day a terrible dragon came to the kingdom. Breathing fire on anyone who crossed its path, it trampled houses and burned fields. Many knights battled the dragon but their swords could not cut its thick scales. Each night it flew home to its cave in the mountains surrounded by a deep ravine.

The dragon was enchanted and protected by a magic spell. It said,

He who would break my spell,

Must carry a thousand swords,

And do it well.

Then cross a bridge which isn't there,

If he wants to reach my lair.

And last, not least, my defeat

Will be an empty cup filled.

Many knights went to battle and many knights were hurt as the dragon moved closer and closer to the castle. The King declared whosoever killed the dragon would be granted half his kingdom. Now knights came from across the sea. They were the most fierce, the bravest and the biggest knights anyone had ever seen. A thousand of them gathered to attack the dragon.

But with his great wings the dragon took no time in knocking 50 knights from their horses and breathing fire on the rest. He said,

You must think I'm here to fiddle,

1,000 men--that's not the riddle.

One man alone, only one man,

With a thousand swords,

That's the plan.

In desperation the King proclaimed whosoever solved the riddles and killed the dragon would be granted their heart's desire.

Now the merchants got busy. Suddenly there were swords everywhere: fat swords, skinny swords, sharp swords, dull swords, fancy swords, but mostly tiny swords so that one man might carry many of them. But a tiny sword is more like a dagger and most knights were too proud to carry a sackful of daggers.

There was also a need for building materials to make the bridge, all kinds and shapes of wood and rock and rope and twine. Of course, with all this material they needed carts to carry it and animals to pull it so there was a run on wagons and horses and donkeys and oxen.

Lastly, the chinaware merchants had a field day. They sold crystal goblets, wooden goblets, big cups, little cups, coffee cups, fat cups, skinny cups. To fill these cups the wine merchants and the milkmaids sold red wine, white wine, sparkling wine, cow's milk, goat's milk and all types of fruit juice.

As a matter of fact, the kingdom had never known such commercial success. Nothing was left of anything resembling a sword or building material, or a wagon to hold it, or an animal to pull it, and there was not a drop of liquid left in all the kingdom but ordinary water.

What was left were sacks and sacks and sacks of money piled everywhere. And did this do any good? No. The knights for all their effort and all their supplies couldn't defeat the dragon and now the countryside was strewn with debris and the kingdom was a mess.

Only the little blacksmith's heart was full of hope for he finally had a chance to win the hand of the Princess. He fashioned a suit of armor and a sword out of old tin cups and scrap metal, mounted his pony and rode to court. Bowing before the King, he said, "I wish to be knighted so that I may rid your kingdom of this horrible monster."

There was a moment of silence, then everyone but the Princess began to laugh. In fact, they laughed and they laughed, which made the little blacksmith's ears turn red. The King said, "You are no match for this dragon. It takes might to fight. You are simply too small."

The little blacksmith squared his shoulders. "I may be slight but I can fight."

The Princess was impressed. It was clear to her he was brave and good. "Father, for my s

ake, knight him this day. You promised 'whosoever should slay the dragon,' and surely he deserves a chance."

The King couldn't refuse his only daughter. He rose from his throne and knighted the blacksmith. Then, for luck, the Princess unwound her long braid, pulled out a single hair and handed it to the littlest knight. He placed it in a pocket over his heart. "May you have good fortune, my brave knight," she said.

So the littlest knight set out on his pony to find the dragon. He met many tired and injured knights and one helpful fellow told him, "Go back. One man can't carry 1,000 swords, nor can you cross a bridge which isn't there, and if you fill an empty cup it won't be empty any more. It is all a trick." He thought the littlest knight was the biggest fool.

The littlest knight had been traveling half a day when he came upon an object in the road beneath a tree. It was a beehive. Being a kind soul he picked it up to put it back in the tree. Suddenly he heard a tiny, buzzing voice.

We see you have kind intentions,

But please don't put us back.

Every knight who's seen us here,

Raised his sword and gave a whack.

Carry us elsewhere, we pray,

And we'll return the favor one day.

"OK," said the littlest knight and carefully tied the beehive to his saddle.

It was shortly after that he found the dragon or rather it found him. It landed nearby to look him over, and said,

Pfft, why you're nothing but a pea,

Who doesn't reach my knee.

Go home and grow some more.

Fighting you would be a bore.

But the littlest knight charged anyway striking a blow with his sword.

"Ouch," said the dragon. The littlest knight charged and struck him again. The dragon roared.

You've gone too far this time.

You hit me on my behind.

I'll fry you 'till

What you look like most,

Is a piece of burnt up toast.

Suddenly there was a buzzing from the knapsack. A bee flew out and up to the littlest knight's ear.

We have a way to repay you,

Throw our beehive and we'll save you.

So the littlest knight grabbed the beehive, throwing it at the dragon's head. Immediately a thousand bees flew out with a thousand stingers. With their tiny swords they stung the dragon again and again. The dragon's eyes began to swell and he could hardly see. With a bellow of pain and anger he leaped into the air and flew off to his cave in the mountains.

The littlest knight followed on his pony. When he reached the dragon's lair he saw that the cliffs of the ravine were so far across that building a bridge would take a year. He sat down to think about it, meanwhile pulling from his pocket the Princess's single silken hair.

Again there was a buzzing from the knapsack and a bee flew out. It asked him what the matter was. When he told it, it said.

This is easy.

To cross a bridge which isn't there,

Could be a single human hair.

Tie the Princess's to my back.

I'll fly it there and

Tie it near the dragon's lair.

The bee did just that. The littlest knight couldn't believe his good fortune until he was fully halfway across the ravine, balancing like an acrobat. The Princess's hair seemed magical for it stretched the whole distance and even with his weight did not break.

He made it across and entered the cave. There he found the dragon in a far corner. It was in misery with its eyes swollen shut and its forked tongue lying on the ground. It h

issed at his approach, for it could still smell him.

I warn you do not come in here.

I'll kill you if you come near.

It's foolhardy to be involved,

When there's still a riddle to be solved.

But the littlest knight wasn't afraid. With his kind heart all he could feel now was pity. He wanted to help the beast, to give it water to drink and cool its swollen eyes.

Returning outside he climbed down the cliff to the stream below. At the bottom there was plenty of water but nothing with which to carry it. Then he spied a chipped cup some knight had tossed from above. Carefully picking it from the sand he filled it as best as he could and climbed back up.

But when he got back to the dragon he discovered that not only had the cup been chipped but it had a crack he had not seen. What little water there was had drained out while he was climbing. He approached the dragon and said, "I'm sorry. I meant to help you, I really did. But the cup is empty."

To his surprise the beas

t rose up with a roar of glee.

Thank you, oh thank you, little knight,

You have saved me, all right!

An empty cup it may be,

But it was filled with kindness, you see.

And an empty cup filled, sets me free!

I was a good and gentle dragon long ago,

Before I angered an evil wizard so that

He cursed me to be as wicked as he.

I'm forever in your debt,

I'm the happiest dragon yet.

Let me take you home.

I'll guard you forever, I tell no lies.

I'll be your wings, if you'll be my eyes.

The littlest knight was shocked, stunned and delighted. The evil dragon wasn't evil at all, only bewitched, and now that the riddles were solved it was proving to be as kind as its new master.

The first thing the littlest knight did was attach the beehive to a high rock at the mouth of the cave. The bees were thrilled. They had a new home with shelter, protection and most important, privacy, and the stream below had enough flowers growing by it to make more honey than they would ever need.

Then the littlest knight, astride his flying dragon, flew home with his pony galloping beneath.

At first the King and all the kingdom were terrified. All except the Princess, that is. She trusted her littlest knight and upon hearing the whole story set about immediately to make a healing salve for the dragon's eyes.

The littlest knight married her and got half the kingdom. The dragon got back his eyesight and, true to his word, guarded the kingdom faithfully.

In time, the littlest knight and the Princess had seven children who loved taking rides on the dragon's back.

Of course, they lived happily ever after.